


Harborside

by MintIceTea



Series: Rumbelle Tumblr Events [6]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M, Mantis Menagerie, May Day Menagerie, Selkies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-20
Updated: 2016-05-20
Packaged: 2018-06-09 13:46:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,230
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6909853
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MintIceTea/pseuds/MintIceTea
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The newcomer in town has caught the attention of both the pretty librarian and her adopted son. [Mantis Menagerie Fic Exchange 2016]</p>
            </blockquote>





	Harborside

**Author's Note:**

  * For [TheStraggletag](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheStraggletag/gifts).



                Rune wasn’t sure why he decided to take the opportunity in this seaside town in Maine. It was more forest than beach. There were so many trees that he would’ve felt anxious if there wasn’t the faint smell of salt air floating between the pines. If he could, he’d leave the ocean behind all together. But he was a coward through and through. It had been weeks since he had donned his skin and slipped beneath the waves. The itch called to him to the point of pain. He would have to answer it today.

                Dropping his worn suitcase on the bed sent a cloud of dust into his face. He scowled, trying and failing to fight back a sneeze. The agent said the house had been cleaned weekly in the years it sat abandoned but Rune highly doubted it. But it was included with the shop that had been left to him, so who was he to complain about a bit of dust. His aunts had been left the place by a distant relative and after their passing it became his.

                Thoughts of his aunties sent Rune into a melancholy mood. Something that he seemed to be in more often than not as of late. Ailsa and Iona had been a constant since he was young, providing a place for him to go and hide whenever his father came back into his life. Mael hadn’t liked the effort it took to get to their place, but Rune had loved the cliffs the women called home. The small shack had barely enough room for the two women, much less him, but they welcomed him anyway. As he grew he helped to support them. Often working as something like their sales rep, taking their handmade clothes into the cities along the coast and selling them. He hadn’t realized until after their passing that they didn’t need his money. They were more than well off, and lived their rural way out of choice.

                Rune heaved a heavy sigh, flicking open his suitcase. He pulled out the soft leathery skin, holding it against his chest. He knew that if he didn’t go to the sea tonight he’d turn to the scotch downstairs. Eyeing the remaining contents of the case he thought he still might. Laying his skin aside he pulled the second skin out, gently stroking it with shaking hands. It was soft and small, the light buttery color of youth. Rune brought it to his lips, pressing a kiss to it as he did every night, hoping, somehow, that the owner could feel it.

                “I love you, son,” he whispered before tucking it back safely into the case. Locking it and slipping it under the bed for his peace of mind. His own skin he gathered up and turned towards the stairs.

____(’..’)____

                Rune popped his head above the waves, taking a breath and gathering his thoughts. He was glad to see that the colonies in the area were purely seal this time of year. Like most selkies nowadays the local population had probably retreated north during the summer months. That would give him plenty of time to know the area before having to introduce himself to the flock. If there even was one. Many selkies had abandoned the old ways of living in sea colonies. Instead settling ashore on islands and seaside towns.

                Overall he was pleased with his findings. The town was small and quiet, something he liked after the years of calling Glasgow his home. The curious locals would be a problem, but he had dealt with their kind before. He would rather deal with humans than his own kind. At least with the humans he could find refuge in the sea.

                 _For the most part_ , he amended silently as he ducked beneath the waves. Eyeing a small fishing boat returning. They looked local, which was far more preferable than commercial, it meant fresh catches. Rune laughed at himself, he was so out of practice that it wouldn’t be productive for him to hunt. Too accustomed to human ways, spoiled by supermarkets.

                He floated for a few more hours, only heading back towards shore when the tide began to change. Though the house wasn’t on the beach, he had been pleased to find that a ten minute private walk through the woods ended on a rocky, secluded beach. It was perfect, if he ended up being the only selkie in the waters off of Storybrooke he wouldn’t be opposed to visiting the sea daily. That would suit him perfectly.

____(’..’)____

                Belle was very excited to see activity in the old antique shop across the way. It had been abandoned for years, its’ sign long faded away. But according to the gossip in the town, a distant relative had finally stepped forward to take responsibility for the building and its’ contents. She had walked by the shop numerous times, and every time she peered through the window, eyeing the shelf of old dusty books. Her hands itched to get a hold of them. It was doubtful that she’d be able to afford them, but maybe the new owner would be amiable to letting her look at them at least.

                She was half tempted to go in now, coffee in hand, and introduce herself. But she was already running late, and Mrs. Nolan’s class was stopping by the library later. Belle promised herself that the first chance she got she’d be over there. Instead she turned her attention to the library. Well, for the most part. Belle loved when Mrs. Nolan’s class came in. All the children were sweet, but young Bailey held a special place in her heart.

                The boy lived in the small orphanage that the nuns ran in town, but more often than not he was in Belle’s care. More than once she had petitioned to adopt him, but had been turned down. Mother Superior, in her standard patronizing tone, had informed Belle on multiple occasions that it wasn’t proper for a child to be raised by a single parent. Much less a young, single woman.

                That didn’t stop Bailey from calling her Mom though. Belle had spent so much time taking care of him when he was a baby that one of his first words was ‘mama’. Something he would shout from his crib whenever Belle would enter the ward.. They both knew it irked Mother Superior, but that didn’t stop him. He was a mischievous eight year old, his sweet nature keeping him out of most trouble.

                Bailey would probably enjoy going to visit the antique shop as well. There was an old scuba helmet that he had been salivating over just as much as Belle and her books. She smiled imagining Bailey trying to haggle the price down to whatever he had managed to save up. He would too, precocious thing.

                 Thoughts of her almost-son occupied her thoughts until the boy himself appeared behind her. “Hey, Mama!”

                “Bae!” Belle dropped a kiss to his forehead. “I missed you!”

                “Missed you too.” He wrapped his arms around her waist. “D’you think that we could go to the beach for dinner? Astrid hasn’t been able to take me to see the seals in  _days_.”

                “Oh, I’d love that!” Astrid was one of the nuns who was in charge of the children. She was sympathetic to Belle and Bailey, and often would cover so that they could spend the afternoons together. “Did you see that someone bought the antique shop?”

                Bailey grinned. “Could you get me the helmet for my birthday then?”

                Belle laughed and gave him a playful shove towards the rest of his class. “We’ll see. Go finish your project with Mrs. Nolan, I’ll pick you up after class.”

                He hugged her once more before dashing back into the stacks to find his classmates. As head librarian Belle usually stayed all day, but now she was thinking about taking an early day and stopping by the antique shop. She may not be able to afford the silly helmet, but she could at least give the owner a head’s-up that an ambitious boy would be by to haggle on the thing.

                That was the excuse she gave the afternoon librarian when she came in. Miss Porter saw right through her. They had been friends long before they had been coworkers. Jane knew of Belle’s fondness for old tomes like the back of her hand.  

                “You go on! Have fun! When was the last time you took time to yourself?”

                Belle pulled a face, and Jane mimicked it before shooing her out.

____(’..’)____

                Rune sneezed into his handkerchief. If he had thought the house was dusty, the shop was twice as bad. At least the house had been cleaned in the intervening years. The shop looked like it hadn’t been touched since the day it closed in the seventies. He had been fighting with the inventory all day, finally giving it up for a bad job and starting from scratch. Luckily most of the items were tagged, so he at least had an idea of the price to start with. Though most of it needed to be adjusted.

                He was hoping for a steady stream of customers in the first week. Anything bought would be something he wouldn’t have to mark down in inventory. Despite the constant stream of curious eyes peering through the windows he jumped when the bells over the door chimed a visitor.

                “Hello?” An accented voice greeted, not immediately spotting him among all the merchandise. But when their eyes met his heart stuttered at her bright smile. “Hello!”

                “Erm, hello,” he murmured. Painfully aware that his black suit was nearly white with the amount of dust he had gotten on him. It felt even more notable next to her crisp white shirt and pressed blue skirt.

                “Are you open? I don’t want to intrude if you aren’t ready for customers yet.” She smiled, teasingly. He noticed her eyes kept going back to some of the stock behind him.

                “Ah, no. Please, help yourself.” Rune stepped aside, gesturing to the shelves.

                “Thank you.” She slipped by him, making a beeline for the ancient bookshelf in the back. He was so distracted by her close proximity, she smelled of roses and vanilla, that he barely caught her introduction. “I’m Belle French, I work at the library – just across the street.”

                “Rune Gold.” He smiled, watching her reverently trace the spine of a book.

                “You’ve just moved to town, haven’t you?” She pulled an ancient book from the shelf, holding it so carefully that he had no qualms when she opened it to flip through.

                “Aye, there was a house left alongside the shop. It seems like it’ll suit my needs.”  He fiddled with a broken necklace on the counter, aware of her bright blue eyes on him.

                “Well, welcome to Storybrooke.” A quick glance at her wristwatch had her startling. She placed the book back on the shelf. “I’m sorry to dash out, but I need to pick up Bailey from school.” Pausing near the door, she pointed at a diving helmet resting on a counter-top. “I’ll bring him back sometime this week to see that, by the way.” And with one last playful smile she was gone.  

                Rune found himself still standing in the spot where she had left him. Smiling foolishly. Shaking himself out of it, he tried to get back to work. But he kept finding his mind wandering back to the pretty librarian.

                He may have to get a library card.

____(’..’)____

                It was a pleasant surprise to see Belle twice in one day, Rune mused, as he rubbed a towel over his dripping hair. Unable to resist the call of the waves he had gone for another swim. He had been leisurely swimming up and down the coast when he heard a newly familiar voice.

                He had spent a lovely hour or so floating, as Belle and the young boy he assumed to be her son, picnicked on the shore. The boy had been watching the waves the kind of intensity that only a child could muster. Only distracted from his vigil by Belle passing him fries.

                Rune had been curious about what they were looking for. But it became apartment when the boy finally spotted his grey-brown hide among the waves. The absolute joy on the child’s face made Rune’s heart ache. He had fought the desire to disappear beneath the waves for about ten minutes until he could no longer handle being the center of attention. Retreating down the shore to his private beach to emerge and dry off.  

                As he made his way back towards the empty pink house he couldn’t keep his mind from wandering back to Belle and her son. Belle’s son looked to be about seven or eight. The same age Rune’s son would’ve been. His sweet little Cinaed. Barely four months old before Mila took him and disappeared. Ran off with her sailor.

                Rune wasn’t surprised when Mila left him. Their union was an arrangement her father had made in hopes of keeping her from leaving the sea. She always had an intense distaste for her own kind. Many whispered that she’d give her skin to the first human who asked, anything to bind herself to the land. Their marriage wasn’t happy by any means, but Mila had found some temporary form of contentment playing house with him that soothed her father’s worries. At least until his passing the next year.

                But by that time Mila had become pregnant and Rune hoped that their child would be the tie that would hold them together. Instead Cinead’s birth ended up being the final straw for Mila. She found it distasteful how much Rune loved the pup. The moment Rune held his son in his arms his world revolved around the boy. Having Rune’s attention focused elsewhere angered Mila. No matter how little she enjoyed his dubious affection towards her.

                She spent so much time on the surface that is was of little surprise when she found a sailor to entertain her. Rune expected her to leave him and their boy any day. He wasn’t enough for her, he’d never be enough. Even his concession to a human life, a small shack on the beach, didn’t please her. He knew one morning he would wake up and find her skin laying across her bed. A sure sign that she had finally had enough of this life.

                Instead he was awoken by the outcry of the pod. Mila had shredded her skin and left it across her father’s memorial rock. Rune had never been a favorite of the flock, but Mila’s brutal disrespect had everyone offering sympathies.

                Especially when Cinead’s pelt was found. Not torn, but in perfect condition. So that Rune could watch as it grew over the years, as Cinead was surely growing somewhere in the world.

                Without him.

                It was the cruelest punishment Mila could think of.

____(’..’)____

                “That was the first seal I’ve seen in weeks!” Bailey chirped as they strolled back into town.

                “I thought Astrid had taken you?”

                “No, well, yeah. But there weren’t any seals. Think I saw a purpose though.”

                Belle smiled at his mispronunciation. “Did you look in your whale book to see what kind of porpoise it was?”

                He shook his shaggy head. For as well-worn as his whale-spotting guide was, Bailey constantly had to assure Belle that whales and dolphins weren’t nearly as cool as seals. There used to be a small pod of them off the shores, but Belle worried that they had either moved on or were no more.

                But the handsome seal Bailey had spotted tonight was a good sign. Anything that made Bailey happy was good. Belle kept him chatting the whole way back to the orphanage, unable to avoid noticing how subdued he became during the journey.

                After she said goodnight to him she’d have to have another chat with Mother Superior.

____(’..’)____

                “Are you alright?” Belle startled at her desk, almost upsetting a stack of books. She reached for them out of instinct, her hands overlapping with Mr. Gold’s who had also moved to catch them. He returned her sheepish smile, but his brow remained furrowed in concern. “Miss French? Are you okay?”

                “Yes, I’m fine! Thanks for saving my books!” She nodded towards the stack his hand still rested on.

                “It’s no problem,” he murmured. Belle pretended like she didn’t notice how he regarded her red and swollen eyes.

                “What can I help you with?” Belle hoped it was something that they could converse about. A book she’d read, or something. Anything to get her mind off last night.

                “I…w-would you like to join me for lunch?”

                She blinked at his stuttered question, but despite the blush rising on his cheeks he held her gaze.

                “I’d love to.”

                ____(’..’)____

                “You didn’t mean to ask me out, did you?” She asked as they settled in a booth at Granny’s near the back.

                He smiled, a little ruefully. “Not today, but you looked like you needed to get out of the library for a moment. Please, forgive me for being presumptuous.”

                “No, you’re right.” Her heart gave a little flutter at the thought that he  _had_  meant to ask her out, eventually.  “You’re forgiven, thank you.”

                “We can talk about anything you’d like, but I’m willing to listen if you need to talk on whatever has upset you.” He offered quietly, wrapping and unwrapping his hands around his mug of coffee.

                “I had an argument with Mother Superior last night.” Belle confided after a long moment of quiet. “She refuses to let me adopt Bailey.”

                “I thought he was your son,” he blurted, before flushing at her look. “I saw you two walking towards the beach last evening, my apologies.”

                “No, he’s practically mine, just not legally. I raised him more than any of the nuns and she still tells me I’m incapable of caring for a child without having a husband to provide for us.” She let out an angry huff. “As if I haven’t taken care of him since he was a baby. Every time he’s been sick I’ve had him stay with me so the other children don’t get sick. That doesn’t seem to make any difference though.”

                “I’m sorry, there’s nothing more painful than being separated from your child,” Rune said quietly, they both fell into silence as their food arrived. Belle watched him thoughtfully as he seemed to contemplate the soup he had ordered. His sorrowful tone spoke of more than just empathy. Her heart ached for him.

                “Thank you.” Belle ventured after a moment, and he gave her a soft smile. “So, um, how have you been enjoying Storybrooke so far?”

                “From what I’ve seen, I’ve liked. I’ve been a little preoccupied with going through the house and the shop. I have enjoyed the beach though.” He quickly took a drink of his tea, as if he had let something slip that he didn’t mean to, but Belle smiled.

                “You should join Bailey and I sometime. We go to the beach and watch for seals.”

                Rune coughed, but admitted that he would very much enjoy that.

                ____(’..’)____

                Bailey had instantly taken to Rune their first night on the beach. Belle had barely been able to get a word in between them. Rune’s impressive knowledge of sea life entranced Bailey, so Belle had given up with a smile. Content to sit back and watch them.

                Rune walked them back to the orphanage. Stepping back and watching them hug goodbye with a soft smile.

                “He really loves you,” he said as Belle took his arm, letting him walk her to her apartment.

                Belle smiled. “Thank you for coming with us. And putting up with Bailey’s chatter, he absolutely adored you.”

                “Oh no, I’m glad I didn’t bore him to death. He’s so curious, it’s wonderful.” Rune looked down at his shoes. “He’s a good kid.”

                Noticing his melancholy attitude, Belle gave his hand a gentle squeeze and he turned a grateful look to her. They walked the rest of the way to her apartment in a sweet, comfortable, silence.

____(’..’)____

                Rune quickly became constant part of their beachside dinners. The need to return to the sea wasn’t as strong when he sat beside it, letting Belle and Bailey’s presence sooth him. He enjoyed those nights, even if afterwards his heart ached. The more he got to know Bailey the harder it was to put out of his mind that he was the same age Cinead would be. And as he cradled Cinead’s pelt he tried to convince himself that it was enough to know his boy was alive, somewhere.

                But it still hurt. Especially as Belle spent more and more time trying to adopt Bailey, her feelings hurt as sharp as his own. Mother Superior had seem to take Belle’s enthusiasm to adopt as a personal slight. Even going so far as saying that she would start looking for  _couples_  outside of town to adopt Bailey.

                More than one evening after they had seen Bailey back he had taken her out for coffee. Sometimes she wanted to vent, others she wanted to be distracted. And during these one-on-one evenings Rune found himself falling for her. Her determination, her sweetness, and her refusal to give up entranced him. His fingers itched with the desire to feel her hair, his lips on hers, her skin against his.

                In a way it amused him, the call of the sea was drowned out so easily by the sound of her voice.

                One evening on the beach he had her lovely voice all to himself. Bailey had fallen asleep, his head on Belle’s lap, and neither of them had the heart to wake him. Since he had finally had enough of Granny’s take out, Rune had offered to make dinner, and led them to the beach nearest his home. Belle had gushed at the sight of his home. Laughing, Bailey had teased that it was pink. To which Rune sniffed, and replied that it was salmon, and Belle concurred with a laugh of her own.

                Now as Belle leaned close to whisper as to not wake Bailey he thought he couldn’t be happier. They spent nearly an hour in blissful quiet chatter, they were only disrupted when fat, cold raindrops woke Bailey with a protest. Laughing, they gathered up the remains of their dinner and retreated to Rune’s house.

                “I thought the storm wasn’t supposed to be here until midnight!” Belle gasped, as she stood dripping just inside the door. Rune quickly brought towels for all of them. “There’s no way we can walk home in this!”

                “I do have a car, but you both are more than welcome to spend the night here.” His heart gave a little flutter as her face brightened.

                “Oh, I’d love to, but I’d have to call. I wouldn’t put it past Mother Superior to accuse me of kidnapping Bailey.” Belle turned to the boy. “Would you mind staying the night?”

                Bailey had been peering upstairs as if he had seen something. “Huh?

                “Is it all right if we spend the night here?”

                “Yeah!” He jumped up and down, shedding water like a sheepdog.

                Rune directed Belle towards the phone before shuffling Bailey into a warm shower, taking the boy’s wet clothes down to the laundry to be added to his and Belle’s once they had both changed. The lights flickered with a rumble of thunder as he made it back to the office where Belle was on the phone.

                “…thank you so much, Astrid. I’m so glad you answered. I’ll have him back first thing in the morning.” Belle was smiling as she hung up the phone, and that bright smile was turned to Rune as he entered. “Astrid will cover for us, but it seems like Mother Superior hasn’t been seen all day.”

                “Wonderful. There’s two guestrooms right next to each other for you and Bae.”

____(’..’)____

                Rune loved having other people in the house. Even as he sat alone in his bedroom. He hadn’t quite made it into the bed yet, sitting in his armchair, and listening to the rain. The rolling thunder almost blocked out the footsteps pausing at his door. “Mr. Gold?”

                “Come in, Bailey.” Rune pushed himself out of his chair, making it towards the door as Bailey poked his curly head in. “What’s wrong?”

                “Did you call me?” Bailey asked, looking unsure even as he asked.

                “No? Did you hear your name?” Rune recalled Bailey’s curious looks when he first entered the house. And those same curious looks were now directed beneath Rune’s bed.

                “Not my name, but I know someone was calling me.” He rubbed at his eyes, and Rune smiled despite his confusion.

                “We’ll figure it out, Bae,” he assured him, a gentle hand steering him back down the hall to his room. “But I believe it can wait until the morning, don’t you?”

                “I guess.” His reply was cut off by a wide yawn. And Rune smiled, nodding and reinforcing that tomorrow they’d figure out what Bailey was hearing. Though he had a niggling feeling that he was afraid to put a voice to.

                Returning to his bedroom, he knelt beside his bed, reaching beneath to pull out a familiar suitcase. Tempted to open it, but frozen in indecision. He needed to talk to Belle, but he couldn’t wake her for his most likely delusional theories. Tomorrow. He’d talk to her tomorrow.

                He’d not get much sleep tonight.

____(’..’)____

                “You know what Bae was talking about.” It wasn’t a question, but Belle had been nearly brimming with the need to ask since Bailey had brought it up over breakfast. Now that they had seen the boy back to the nun’s care, and had made it to the quiet of the unopened library, it was time to talk.

                “Aye, I have an idea, but ah, I wanted to ask something before.” He twisted his hands nervously, but Belle’s patient smile kept him from back tracking. “Do you know anything about Bailey’s biological parents?”

                Belle’s sudden scowl had him stumbling over and apology, but she waved that off. “No, not your fault. It’s just…Bailey was abandoned. I used to borrow Archie’s dog to take runs on the beach, and I found him. The doctors said he was about six months old, and he was so malnourished. It just makes me angry. He was such an easy baby to take care of, you know? So sweet and hardly ever cried.” She let out a huff of laughter even as she seethed. “Even when he would get upset I just put him in the bath and he’d play for hours if I let him. Rune?”

                “They… left him on the beach?” He choked out.

                “Mm-hmm,” she rested her hand on his shoulder, worry in her eyes. “Rune? What does this have to do with Bailey?”

                “My… my ex-wife ran off with my son, my Cinead, when he was an infant, and I can’t help but wonder…”

                Belle cocked her head curiously at him, a look of understanding coming to her face. “You both have very similar eyes, I sort of hoped…. did this occur to you last night? Does it have something to do with the sounds Bae heard last night?”

                “It may.” He took a deep breath, thankful for the silence of the empty library. “The only reasoning that I can think of is that he heard the call of something of Cinead’s, that only Cinead should be able to hear.”

                “Call?” She wrinkled her nose. “Like werewolf, call of the moon? I think I would’ve noticed if Bae was were. If anything I would’ve suspected him of being mer, the way he can’t get enough of the water. But I’ve never spotted scales on him.”

                Rune couldn’t help but laugh in relief. While doubtful, Belle didn’t seem to reject the idea. It wasn’t until she started into theorizing on more rare and obscure lines of Folk that he felt inclined to interrupt.

                “Mermaids were close, but Selkies would be the Folk you were thinking of.” He smiled, and flushed as she turned to him, eyes bright.

                “Ohhh,” she breathed. “I should’ve suspected. But he doesn’t have seal skin.”

                “I have my son’s pelt with me at home, his mother left it behind when she took him.”

                “And that’s why you think Bae is Cinead, because Cinead’s skin called to him?”

                “Yes.”

                “Wow.” Belle leaned back in her chair, staring into the shelves. Rune wrung his hands a little nervously, waiting for her to process the revelation. After a few long moments she turned to him. “So was his mother a selkie, or…”

                “We were both from the same flock,” he answered.

             “Oh,” Belle breathed. “Do you…never mind.” The blush across her face told him what she was meaning to ask.

                “I do have my pelt,” his returning smile was shy. “If you’d like to see it, sometime.”

                “Oh yes!”

____(’..’)____

                Four months later it had warmed up enough that Belle could happily lounge on the beach with her book and not worry about the chill at all. The happy barks in the water kept a smile on her face despite the morbid turn her book had taken. With a sigh, she bookmarked it and rolled over to watch her boys play.

                They had introduced the idea to Bailey that Rune may have been his father, and while initially hesitant Bae had accepted it without the upheaval that Rune had dreaded. When Rune asked if Bae was angry with him, the boy had shaken his head. “Nah, you were going to be my dad when you marry mom anyway. So it doesn’t matter.” And that simple outlook had been it. If Belle had any doubt about Bae’s parentage it evaporated the moment he touched the pelt. The way Rune cried firmly sealed his place in Belle’s heart, as if there had been any doubt. She had been falling for him for months, and he admitted the same the evening he took her to the beach to show her his seal side.

                Now his sleek form was supervising Bae as the boy attempted some jumps and spins, resulting in some pretty impressive belly flops. Her laugh caught their attention, Bae letting out a noisy huff and dove beneath the water to save his pride. Rune on the other hand began to swim towards the shore, where they had set up the blanket as near the waves as they dared.

                Belle rolled onto her side as he pulled himself up beside her. Before he had a chance to shed his skin she had thrown her arm over him. His amused snuffle made her giggle, and she kissed his wet skin. Pulling back she let him pull off his seal form, draping a beach towel over his bare lower half.

                “He’s getting the hang of it,” Rune said proudly. “It’s almost as if he’d been able to transform his whole life.”

                “You’re a good teacher. I love watching you two.” He made a pleased sound at her admission and leaned over to press his lips to hers. 

 


End file.
